The air intake of an outboard engine is generally through an intake duct which is disposed at the rear of a cowling. However, water spray splashed during navigation may enter with the intake air, so that the water is sucked into the engine or wets electric equipment of the engine thereby to cause engine trouble. In order to eliminate this trouble, there has been proposed a construction, for example, in which the rear recess of the cowling is formed at its center portion with a generally upright intake port having a cylindrical shape. According to this construction, however, since the air sucked into the cowling through the cylindrical intake port will flow substantially in a vertically downward direction, it directly impinges upon the engine body and the electric equipment. Consequently, if water is entrained in the air stream, the engine body and the electric equipment may be wetted with the water. Thus, this prior art construction has failed to solve the aforementiond problem in a perfect manner.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to eliminate the drawback concomitant with the aforementioned prior art and to provide an outboard engine intake duct which can reduce the entry of water into the cowling and which can discourage the water, if it has entered, from wetting the engine and the electric equipment, and from reaching the intake system of the engine itself.